Light-bulb moments in Vanuatu!

What happens when four students join the ‘Go Vanuatu’ mission trip, leaving Australian shores for the very first time? Lucas King, chaplain, and team leader of ‘Go Vanuatu’, shares below …. 

This year we were privileged to take four Year 10 students from rural NSW to Vanuatu for our ‘Go Vanuatu’ mission trip, a valuable cross-cultural experience and an amazing opportunity to stand alongside and support communities in Vanuatu. 

While each student experienced a unique journey of their own, they shared some initial similarities. Prior to travelling to the SU Australia Vanuatu campsite at Pango Point, not one of the students had experienced Christian community or church before, nor had they travelled or been on an aeroplane until this moment. 

Over the next two weeks I was privileged to watch each of them not only survive, but soar. 

While there are many stories I’d love to share, one story is of particular significance.

When Sara* arrived in Vanuatu she was immediately overwhelmed by the

sights, sounds, and sheer sensory bombardment of being there. After the first day, she unfortunately became quite ill due to severe motion sickness, no doubt exacerbated by anxiety and missing the comforts of home.

This was not, however, the end of her story. Across the next few days she experienced amazing growth. By the final day, Sara had made a complete turnaround. When it was time to leave for the airport, I went up to her as she stood in the driveway gazing around camp, and said, “time to go.”

She turned to me and I saw that she was sobbing. She said “I don’t want to leave; there is still so much to do. There is so much I want to help with.”

Sara had caught a glimpse of  how working with children and communities was so valuable. She had been able to make a difference. 

So impacted was she that she is now in conversations with her mother about the two of them returning together and becoming more involved with providing aid where needed.

She was not the only student impacted. On the last day of our time at camp, we had a team-debrief and went around the circle sharing highlights.. Two of the students said their most memorable time was going to church and hearing local leader Mama Lily’s testimony and spending time in that space.

This is one of the most important reasons why I run these trips, to see these ‘light bulb’ moments in the lives of those that come. 

Thank you for helping make light-bulb illuminating, life-changing trips like this possible, and for helping bring light into the lives of students and communities alike. 

Lucas King – Team leader.

To find out more about SU Australia’s connections and work in Vanuatu, and the upcoming Schoolies trip to Vanuatu at the end of this year please visit su.org.au/events/su-australia-schoolies-in-vanuatu-2025